Democrats dominate the list of top ten lawmakers in the amount of campaign money they spend on private security, data provided by OpenSecrets indicates.
In fact, eight of the first ten congress members on the list are Democrats, including a few names associated with strict gun control platforms.
Leading the list compiled by Axios – by far – is Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) who spent a whopping $605,900 for personal security in the past year.
Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) is second, doling out $364,000 for security last year. The only other Republican in the top 10 is Pat Toomey (PA), landing at 6th.
Democrats in the top 10 include Warnock, fellow freshman Georgia Senator Jon Ossoff (GA), Senator Mark Kelly (AZ), Rep. Cori Bush (MO), Rep. Eric Swalwell (CA), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY), Senator Joe Manchin (WV), and Rep. Mike Levin (CA).
Pretty amazing analysis from from @axios
How much members of Congress are spending on personal security
Freshman Georgia @SenatorWarnock spent $600,000 https://t.co/AvmYhMaaMc
— Sean Spicer (@seanspicer) February 16, 2022
Democrats Splurge On Personal Security
It’s difficult to avoid the obvious hypocrisy involving a list of spending for personal security that is dominated by Democrat lawmakers. Especially when some of them are fierce advocates of stricter gun control laws or “defunding” the police.
Leading the list is Warnock, who nearly doubles his nearest competitor in spending for security details.
During a sermon in 2014, the Georgia Senator mocked “Stand Your Ground” laws designed to protect law-abiding Americans.
“No, it’s not a ‘Stand Your Ground’ law,” Warnock said. “It’s a shoot-first law. Shoot first, ask questions later.”
That same year he shredded pro-gun lawmakers supporting the Safe Carry Protection Act.
“You’ve got politicians who go to church every Sunday morning and then walk into that capitol, stand under that gold dome, and come up with the dumbest legislation you can ever imagine,” Warnock said.
“Think about all the crazy people you bump into just on the routine, every week. On your job, on the street, some of them in church. … Imagine all them people with guns.”
BOMBSHELL: Newly found video shows Georgia Senate candidate @ReverendWarnock LAUGHING at church-goers who defend themselves with guns.
First Warnock goes after our veterans, now our Second Amendment.
Georgians have a clear choice Jan. 5! #gapol #gasen pic.twitter.com/YFtGdiqkOi
— NRA (@NRA) November 30, 2020
Defund the Police
Other Democrats on the personal security spending list that stand out include staunch ‘defund the police’ advocates Bush and Ocasio-Cortez.
Bush, in an interview with CBS News this past August, argued that it’s not hypocritical for her to spend money on private security while trying to defund the police, telling critics to “suck it up” and suggesting any judgment of her actions means people ‘want her to die.’
“They would rather I die?” she said. “You would rather me die? Is that what you want to see?”
No, we’d rather you not be a raging hypocrite fueled by weapons-grade ignorance. Can we start there?
“So suck it up,” Bush told viewers adding, “and defunding the police has to happen … We need to defund the police and put that money into social safety nets.”
She spent $233,700 this past year on personal security according to the Axios report.
Fellow Squad member, AOC, spent $83,200 for her own security during the same timeframe.
New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC), who has expressed support for defunding the police, was ushered out of a news event with Capitol police protection.#JustTheNews pic.twitter.com/dXtEtP6eVf
— Just the News (@JustTheNews) September 21, 2021
Ocasio-Cortez complained not too long ago when then-New York City mayor Bill de Blasio announced he had cut $1 billion from the NYPD budget.
“Defunding the police means defunding police,” she said. “It does not mean budget tricks or funny math.”
